Israel Expels 8 More Arab Activists to Lebanon

Israel on Tuesday expelled eight more accused Palestinian activists to Lebanon as the army continued its crackdown on the Arab uprising in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Also on Tuesday, Ezer Weizman, a Cabinet minister without portfolio, became the first senior Israeli official to denounce last weekend’s assassination of Khalid Wazir, a Palestine Liberation Organization leader, in Tunis. Weizman did not confirm Israel’s alleged role in the killing, but he said Wazir’s death will harm the Middle East peace process.

The expulsions raised to 20 the number of Palestinians deported since the uprising began Dec. 9. Four more are appealing expulsion orders issued last week in the wake of the death of a young Jewish settler in a West Bank village.

Tirza Porat, 15, died two weeks ago in a clash between Arab stone throwers and armed guards who accompanied 16 young Israelis on a nature hike outside the village of Beita. At first, army investigators said Porat had been stoned to death by the villagers. But later they said she had been shot with the gun of one of the guards.

Six of those expelled Tuesday were Beita residents whom the army accused of participating in the incident, and two others were allegedly longtime West Bank activists. None were tried or convicted before their expulsions, which were ordered by the army.

All eight had filed appeals against the expulsions but withdrew them Monday, saying they have no faith in the legal process. A State Department spokesman condemned the expulsions, repeating the U.S. position that such measures violate the Fourth Geneva Convention and due process. Israel has said the measures are necessary to maintain order.

In an interview with Israeli army radio, Weizman, a former defense minister, said that the assassination of Wazir “doesn’t contribute to the fight against terrorism; in principle it creates more. It distances the peace process and will bring greater hostility and make us more vulnerable around the world.”

Weizman is an influential dove in the Labor Alignment, the more dovish half of Israel’s shaky coalition government.